Applying to be a Young Curator – FAQs

Here are a few questions that we have been asked about what is involved in being a Young Curator with Transform. We are currently recruiting for Young Curators, more information is available here.

When will the sessions be?

The sessions will take place from 6-8pm on Wednesday evenings every 2 weeks, beginning on 25 September and running until 18  December 2024.

Where will they be held?

At Transform’s office in Mabgate Mills.

Will this role carry on into the new year?

Our hope is that the young curators that we recruit for this first period will continue working with us up until the festival in October 2025 but we are currently waiting on funding confirmation to confirm this. We will know more by December (hopefully sooner) but will keep those working with us updated when we have more information.

Can I take part now even though I can’t or might not be able to take part next year?

Yes – at this point it isn’t a problem if you can only take part in the first phase or aren’t sure what commitment would look like for you next year yet. However priority may be given to those who could ideally carry on working with us up until the next festival.

What will the at home work look like?

The at home work will vary every week depending on what was discussed in the sessions, but could include researching different artists, looking at festival programmes from all over the world or watching video footage. Sometimes there will be a specific research prompt for you to look into between sessions. We imagine this at home research should take you about 2 hours a week.

How will I get paid?

You will be paid £12 per hour for every hour you work with us, and for the at home work. You will be paid via bank transfer after sending an invoice to Transform. We can support with showing you how to create and send an invoice.

Will I have to register as self-employed?

We advise that you do and can talk you through this if helpful.

If I’ve been a young curator with Transform before, can I apply?

Unfortunately on this occasion we have decided to close the opportunity to those who have previously worked with us in a young curator capacity. This is because we only have a limited number of roles available and we want to make sure that as many people as possible are benefitting from the learning involved in this role.

I don’t live in Leeds, but I live in Leeds City Region, can I still take part?

If you live in one of the local authority areas in West Yorkshire, comprising Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield, then you can still apply. If travel costs are a barrier to attending we can consider covering these as an access requirement but usually we wont pay for travel to & from the sessions as you receive an hourly payment for your time. Please detail if you would require this in the ‘access’ section on the application form.

What are you looking for from applicants?

We are excited to hear from people who are enthusiastic to make things happen in Leeds. You absolutely do not need to have experience in the arts or putting on events, but we are particularly keen to work with people who enjoy art and culture (in whatever form that would look like for you), who want to learn more about what is involved in curation for a festival, and who feel as though they would benefit from taking on this opportunity.

What sort of activities and duties will potential candidates be doing during their weekly evening meetings?

It will vary from week to week but each week there will be a focus for the session, which could involve hearing from an Arts professional about their role, watching footage of performances and discussing responses to them, coming up with ideas about themes or activities that could take place at the next Transform festival. You will have two main focusses in your work as a young curator for this phase, one will be around selecting a pre-existing show to take place at the next Transform festival, and the other will be developing a new project to be developed with young people in Leeds in 2025.

How much creative freedom does the curation team have when designing and executing events?

You will have a great deal of creative freedom as a collective group, both in shaping the programme for the next festival, as well as leading on the development of a project to be developed with young people in 2025. There will be parameters for you to work within, for example the amount of budget available for your project, and the spaces available for events, but in general we are excited for you to shape our thinking and imagine together what the next festival could look like.

What opportunities for professional and personal growth are available within the team?

You will gain experience in multiple areas, including:

• Strategising
• Budgeting
• Designing projects
• Commissioning artists
• Putting together a programme
• Dramaturgy of festivals (how it all fits together and speaks to each other)
• Working as a team
• Sharing thoughts about performance
• Networking with arts professionals

And more! Plus you will meet a group of people interested in making things happen alongside you.

Are there any other members of the team that the young curators work closely with?

In this role you will connect with all members of the Transform team (we are only a small organisation so that is currently 4 people!)  but you will mainly be working with our Producer, Ema and our Freelance Producer, Kate. A few of the sessions will be led by other members of the team including our two Directors, Tim and Ali.

What are the common obstacles event curators face, and how are they typically overcome?

From previous feedback one obstacle can be when the brief is too broad and it’s difficult to condense an idea into something achievable. To counter this we have put parameters in place to give you more of a focus, however you will still have a lot of creative freedom. Other obstacles can include working together with people who have differing ideas to yourself, but this can be overcome through talking through issues and coming to a consensus that works best for everyone and for the overall festival activity.

Have a question not on this list? Shoot us an email on info@transformfestival.org and we will get back to you.